Watching Dr Oz 10/4/12: Does Food Porn Make You Fat?, Are Pesticides A Threat?, Dr Oz Tests for Pesticide Residue

The Dr. Oz Show

Airdate: October 4, 2012

Dr. Oz: Are Pesticides The Greatest Threat To Your Kids' Health?

• Can looking at glossy pictures of gorgeous food make you fat?
• Is organic food healthier?
• Dr. Oz conducts his own test of conventional vs organic foods

Can looking at pictures of tempted, decadent, tantalizing food making you fat? “Is Organic Food Healthier?” Dr. Oz says the headlines got it wrong about the nutrition content of organic food and talks to Dr. Alan Greene to find out if we've been deceived.

Photo credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Dr. Oz: Can Food Images Make You Fat?

Viewing pictures or seeing a television show with images of delicious, juicy, succulent food stimulates and fires up the area of the brain effected when having sex. These pictures also cause the body to release the hunger hormone Ghrelin and makes you hungry.

Those pictures of seductive, delectable, and fattening food that you crave can then cause you to eat larger portions and to pack on the pounds.

Gail Simmons is the Special Projects Director for Food And Wine magazine, a judge on Top Chef and the author of Talking with My Mouth Full: My Life as a Professional Eater. Ms. Simmons said that taking beautiful pictures of food is a lot like pictures of beautiful pictures of landscapes. The photos make you want to go to that place, they make you want to cook that food. We have to eat three times a day, if not more, so why not do it well?

Joe Bastianich is a judge on Masterchef, owns restaurants on two continents and owns a food emporium in NY. Mr. Bastianich asked why is “food porn” negative when the images are of foods with cultural significance, of foods well prepared? Why is that negative? When junk food and unhealthy food is made to look glamorous in advertising campaigns it does a disservice to our culture and the healthy food that we do eat, said Mr. Bastianich.

Amanda Simpson is a food blogger, runs the website FoodPornDaily, and is the author of Food Porn Daily: The Cookbook. Ms. Simpsom said food porn highlights healthy options done well.

In Food and Wine magazine, Ms. Simmons says we make the food look amazing but you don't have to eat it all. This is about entertainment and you don't have to eat everything you see.

Cooking shows make viewers believe that they can make the food on the show. Despite what people believe and despite their attempts, porn can't actually be recreated at home, said Dr. Oz. There's a difference between what is shown on TV and what you can do at home.

Mr. Bastianich said pron is protected as free speech and so is a picture of a bacon double cheeseburger. When people see porn then translate that into how to treat people, how to behave in a relationship, there's a danger. Viewers of food porn should not then translate high calorie foods or large portions as a normal way to eat.

Ms. Simmons says she and the other guests on the stage all eat this sensual, delectable food all the time yet none of them are fat. They key is knowing how much to eat and making healthy choices.

Before she began writing the food pron cookbook, Ms. Simpson said she was 110 pounds heavier. During the process of writing the book she had to eat each dish multiple times to develop the recipes and yet she still lost weight. It's up to the individual to know and control what they eat and how much they eat.

Apparently, Dr. Oz had a hard time finding guests to appear and discuss this topic. Why was it so hard to get anyone to talk about food porn? The three guests said they were more than willing to appear and don't understand the reluctance of other people. Mr. Bastianich said he's part of an industry that should portray food in a healthy way and be a model of how to incorporate healthy food into a healthy lifestyle. He is a champion of showing people how to make healthy choices and live a healthy lifestyle.

Mona loves food, loves food shows, loves food blogs, and The Dr. Oz Show. Six to eight hours of her day is spent watching food shows. She makes and sells cupcakes from her home kitchen inspired by food shows and magazines. In two years Mona has gained 20 pounds. Her work is in the kitchen and she fallen into the habit of eating larger portions and making choices that aren't very healthy.

To explain how these tempting food photos effect our brains, Dr. Oz showed a CAT scan of a brain in a normal state – gray and healthy. When viewing food porn or watching someone make your favorite food, the part of the brain that gets excited during sex will light up as if you were experiencing sex. Seeing the larger-than-life food, the gooey yumminess, the crispy crunchy deliciousness makes us want to eat those foods and many people end up over-indulging.

Dr. Oz: Secrets to Healthy Food Porn

• Treat food porn like porn and keep it to low doses. Have your sensual food and enjoy every bite then step away. It's not necessary to eat every bit of it.
• Have bigger meals for lunch not dinner to give the body time to digest and to work it off.

Mr. B said he gets how seductive food images can be. His trigger food is pasta but he understands that he can't belly up to the noodle bowl. Instead, he eats 100g of pasta, one serving, and rather than drown it in rich, creamy sauce he dresses the portion of pasts much like salad is dressed – sparingly.

[Click the links below to read more about the hunger hormone ghrelin from previous posts on WatchingDrOz:
9/26/11: Secret Boost to Lose 10% of Body Weight
1/23/12: Lose Weight While You Sleep
2/23/12: Bonus Tip for Weight Loss]

Dr. Oz: Are Pesticides The Greatest Threat To Your Kids' Health?

Dr. Oz said pesticides in food could be the greatest threat to your children's health. In the headlines, the media told us that organic food is not healthier so don't waste your money. Dr. Oz said the headlines got it wrong.

A new study out of Stanford University said that organic and conventional food are the same. Looking at over 200 studies [is this another meta-analysis?], the study said that organic food does not have more nutrients than conventional and you don't need to waste your money.

Dr. Alan Greene, pediatrician, said he is very alarmed by this information and hat the study looked only at marginal nutritional differences without looking at how the pesticide content of conventional food harms health. The FDA itself says one of it's priorities is getting chemicals out of children's diet.

Overload of pesticides and chemicals in children's bodies from food can lead to memory problems, low IQ, learning disabilities, said Dr. Greene.

The headlines left consumers confused. A mom in audience shared that her daughter suffered from chronic health and memory issues. Since going organic three years ago her daughter is healthier and her immune system is stronger. She believes the difference in her daughter's health is attributed to going organic.

Dr. Oz discussed another study that looked at the urine of children who ate conventional foods. That study, he explained, showed pesticide residues and said those chemicals came from the food that was eaten.

Another mom from the audience said on the list of things she's worried about for her family pesticides are not at the top. She wants to encourage her kids to eat healthier and keep them safe from bullies but pesticides aren't on her radar.

Dr. Greene said he's not trying to scare people but he wants people to key in on the fact that reducing toxic exposure from our food can lead to a reduction in chronic diseases.

The government, said Dr. Oz, tells us these pesticide residues are minute and have no negative effects.

Dr. Greene says don't buy into that information. If you apply the same standard that minute amounts of pesticide aren't harmful, then many pharmaceuticals drugs are also given in minute doses but create huge effects in the body. Dr. Greene thinks these minute traces of pesticides are dangerous and we should take steps to reduce our exposure.

Dr. Oz: Tests for Pesticide Residues

The Dr. Oz staff ran their own experiment to determine how much exposure to pesticides do we receive from eating conventional vs. eating organic. Thirty peaches and six bags of celery were tested by a laboratory in California that specializes in testing pesticide residues.

The organic celery had no detectable pesticide residue but the conventional celery showed residues from three different types of pesticides. Even after harvesting, shipping, and merchandising, being washed and cleaned along the way, the conventional celery still had detectable levels of pesticides.

Organic peaches tested by The Dr. Oz Show still showed a residue for two types of pesticides. The conventional peaches tested positive for seven different pesticides.

Dr. Greene said the results are clear that by choosing organic you are getting a lower level of pesticide exposure than when eating conventional foods. Organic is a good investment, he said, when it comes to reducing our toxic exposure.

Why did the organic peaches still test positive for pesticides? Dr. Greene said that pesticides sprayed by conventional farms neighboring organic farms can drift over and come into contact with the organic foods. The contamination from the neighboring farm is low but it's still present.

All the foods tested by the Dr. Oz staff tested below acceptable levels set by the government. Dr. Greene says at real-world levels of exposure we are posing great risks to our health. Why add toxins to our bodies when there is another option available?

The second mom from the audience who said choosing organic is low on her list of priorities was asked if these results have changed her mind. She replied that she grew up eating food which would today be considered conventional and turned out healthy. She may make some changes and buy a few more organic items but not many.

Dr. Oz said his greatest concern with this issue is that toxins presents an overload to children to their liver which filters them out, their immune system which is under developed, and the brain which is still growing.

Dr. Greene explained that the FDA has already lowered some allowable levels of some pesticides so there is a concern over exposure and there are steps being taken. Decades ago no one thought lead exposure was dangerous but we know differently now. Dr. Greene said that since regulations regarding the use of lead and the resulting reduction in our exposure levels we've seen an increase in IQ's across the population which can be directly correlated to reducing lead in our environment.

Eating organic foods for only five days, pesticide levels in the urine of kids goes way down. Choosing organic can have an immediate impact.

Dr. Oz: Most Important Organic Foods

Dr. Oz said he wants people to eat organic foods and he's provided a list of foods he thinks are most important to buy organic. It's hard to get pesticide residues off conventional foods. Foods tested for pesticide residues are tested after washing.

hard to get pesticides off the food, foods are tested for residues after washing

basic rule thin skin go organic execptions like cantelope absorb into fruit

Click here to view the Grocery List slide show from DoctorOz.com.

Dr. Oz Most Important Organic Foods #1: Blueberries

Dr. Oz begins his day with blueberries and eats a lot. If you eat a lot of a certain food, he said it's important to get it organic. Dr. Greene said that exposure to organophosphates, which are used on blueberries, is linked to ADHD.

Dr. Oz Most Important Organic Foods #2: Peaches

Some conventional peaches have been found with as many as 50 pesticides. Just how many pesticides are there? A lot. The test commissioned by Dr. Oz looked for 91 pesticides in the foods submitted. Toxins not only come in contact with the skin of the fruit but they are also absorbed into the flesh of the fruit.

Dr. Oz Most Important Organic Foods #3: Strawberries

Strawberries grow lower to the ground and therefore have a greater level of exposure to pesticides applied to the crop. The thin skin of strawberries allow for pesticides to be readily absorbed. Being a tender fruit, consumers don't scrub strawberries which can help to remove some of the pesticides left on the skin.

Dr. Oz Most Important Organic Foods #4: Celery

Celery is at the top of the list of most contaminated produce. Celery doesn't have a skin so pesticides get directly into the flesh.

Dr. Oz Most Important Organic Foods #5: Leafy Greens

Growing close to the ground allows for a greater concentration of pesticides to remain on leafy greens. Insects also love to eat leafy greens so they are sprayed with more pesticides increasing the risk of exposure.

Dr. Oz Most Important Organic Foods #6: Potatoes

As the most consumed “vegetable” in the US, potatoes are in a class by themselves in how the pesticides are applied. Potatoes receive several doses of fungicides and pesticides throughout their life-cycle. Potato seeds are soaked in fungicides. While the plant is growing, pesticides are applied which go directly into the potato. After harvest, typically more pesticides are applied.

The basic rule to keep in mind is that for produce with a thin skin it's important to go organic with exceptions such as cantaloupe which absorbs pesticides into the flesh of the fruit.

Click here to read the statement provided by members of produce organizations regarding the use of pesticides and chemicals on produce from DoctorOz.com.

[The Environmental Working Group (EWG) provides an annual list of which foods are most important to purchase as organic and which foods you can save money on by buying conventional. Click here to see the 2012 EWG Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen.]

The Dr. Oz Dancers

These ladies enjoying staying healthy by moving and they know you're more likely to exercise if you've got a friend on board. They can't always be together everyday to exercise together so they started filming their workouts and posting them on YouTube. The group showed Dr. Oz one of their workouts. [I searched YouTube and couldn't find any clips. Perhaps there will be something on DoctorOz.com later in the week.]

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